A New Family, A New Life
by Ava R.G
Summary: Harry Potter has a secret he would like to keep between him and his two best friends. As they journey to Hogwarts for their 5th year, his friends decide they can no longer keep his secret. Mentions of abuse/spanking. Don't like? Please don't read.
1. Time To Break A Promise

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make any money off of what I write in the realm of Harry Potter.

A/N: Hi everyone! This is my first Harry Potter fic, as well as my first fic that deals with the topic of abuse/spanking. This is going to work itself out to be a Harry/Severus fic in a strictly son/parent relationship. No slash! So, with out further ado, I would like to introduce you to my new fic! Please read and review!

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><p>Harry sighed with relief as he made it through the barrier of Platform 9 ¾; he was finally going 'home.' It had been another horrible summer at the Dursleys, and quite honestly, Harry had never been more excited for the new term to begin. As he pushed his trolley with his trunk and Hedwig on it, he tried to maneuver his way through the throngs of parents saying goodbye to their children, an undeniable feeling of jealousy settling at the pit of his stomach.<p>

As he pushed forward, Harry finally spotted a sea of red hair; the Weasley family. When he finally reached them, he observed as Mrs. Weasley kissed each of her children on the cheek and embraced them in tight hugs one at a time. Not wanting to interrupt the moment, Harry hung back silently. That is, until Mrs. Weasley spotted him.

"Harry, dear!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed before ushering him closer to her. She enveloped him in a tight embrace, loosened her grip, and then kissed him on the cheek as well before letting him go. The process took less than a minute, but it still caused a number of his muscles to light up in fire. As he backed away, Harry attempted to appear less tense, not wanting Mrs. Weasley to notice.

"How was your summer, Harry?" Mrs. Weasley asked him.

"Um…" Harry was saved from having to answer her question. "Come on mum, let him be." Ron interrupted; he gave Harry a knowing glance. "I'm sure the last thing Harry wants right now is to be wasting time lolly-gagging on the platform, waiting to be trampled by the last students to board the train."

"Oh Ron, don't be ridiculous!" his mother chastised.

Smiling at each of her children, Harry included, she said, "Alright, you best be getting on the train then. Have a safe trip. Owl me when you get all settled in. Oh, and remember to be on your best behavior! All of you!" she glanced at Harry as she finished her little speech. A chorus of "yes mums" and a "yes Mrs. Weasley" followed.

Gathering their belongings, the group made their way onto the train. Once on the train, they all split off into different directions to find a compartment to sit in. Since they had been able to make it onto the train before the last minute students arrived, Harry and Ron were lucky enough to find an empty compartment towards the back of the train. Just as they were about to lift their trunks into the overhead compartment, Hermione found them.

"Hey guys!" she said cheerily. "I trust you both had a pleasant summer." She said, smiling at Ron before eyeing Harry. Hermione and Ron shared a knowing glance. Harry, used to their little exchanges, didn't miss it; he simply rolled his eyes at his friends' antics before turning to Hermione. "Would you like help lifting your trunk?" He asked. Hermione smiled her thanks and nodded.

As Harry reached down for the handle of her trunk, Hermione noted his movements; they were very careful and stiff. She glanced over at Ron to see that he was making the same assessments as she had been; they looked at each other sadly. Ron went to help Harry as he struggled to lift the weight of Hermione's trunk over his head; on a second thought, he just sat down, tight lipped and shaking his head, knowing that Harry would object to his assistance. Hermione joined Ron as Harry gingerly sat down across from them.

No one spoke.

Harry looked down at the floor, shamefaced. He knew what his friends were thinking. The only question he had was how long it would take before he would have to answer their questions. It was like this every year since their second year.* Thinking back, Harry remembered what it was like the first time he openly discussed with his best friends the abuse he suffered at the hands of his aunt and uncle.

Flashback

The trio had just finished loading their trunks in the overhead storage compartments before getting ready to settle in for the long journey to Hogwarts. While Ron and Hermione had flopped down on the cushioned seats of the train, Harry sat back gingerly, unable to contain a wince. He quickly looked up at his friends to see if they had noticed, before quickly snapping his attention to the floor, ashamed to find their eyes locked on him.

It was quiet for a few moments.

"Harry…" Hermione was the first to speak. "Harry, are you alright?" she asked.

Harry sat there for a few more moments before answering his friend's question. The problem was he didn't exactly know what to say. _Of course I'm not alright._ He thought bitterly to himself. _I only embarrassed my uncle in front of his boss, and then had to pay the consequences of unsuccessfully playing the invisible nephew. _

"I'm fine." He answered.

"Harry, mate, what happened? Did you do get in trouble before your relatives dropped you off at the train station?"

Harry gulped and looked out the window before answering. "N-not exactly" He stuttered. He closed his eyes and cleared his throat before continuing. "I…well, I sort of made a scene at a dinner party that my uncle had at the house."

"The one where that house elf showed up?" Hermione asked. Harry nodded confirmation.

"How could they blame you for that night? It was the house elf that used magic and caused that cake to land on that woman wasn't it?" Ron continued. Harry nodded again.

"It doesn't matter. They blamed me anyway. My uncle said that none of that stuff would have happened if I didn't live under their roof, so of course it was my fault. I-I had to be punished." Harry was shaking in his seat, which wasn't helping his case any; his backside was already incredibly sore and his shaking just irritated it even further.

"Oh that's awful!" Hermione interjected. She bit her lip as she debated whether she wanted to ask her next question. "How were you punished, Harry?"

Harry went incredibly pale; the color quickly drained from his face before he blushed scarlet from embarrassment. "Um, I'd rather not say."

Ron was the next to speak up. "Listen, Harry. Either you tell us what happened, or we bring this to McGonagall's attention as soon as we get to the castle. You're not acting like yourself, and you are really making us worry. Spill it!"

Harry looked at Ron, shocked. Never had his friend been so forceful before. Last year, Ron had been very much a follower; maybe everything they had done to save the Stone that year had changed him a bit. Not wanting to involve his Head of House, Harry decided it would be in his best interest to share with his friends what his summer had been like.

End Flashback

Harry recalled the looks of terror on his friend's faces as he had described the abuse he suffered at the hands of his aunt and uncle. It hadn't been easy, but with his friends' prodding questions, he had been able to share what he went through.

Each year, when the three of them boarded the train, it was only a matter of time before Hermione and Ron would question him about his summer; they had agreed that, if Harry told them what his relatives had done to him before they got to school, unless they thought he was in any amount of real danger, they wouldn't tell any of the professors about it.

"What happened this time?" Ron asked.

Trying to push down his nerves, Harry thought of how to best answer the question. Considering the deal he had made with Ron and Hermione three years ago, he felt it would be best to answer with the truth.

"Not much really." He answered. Deciding to elaborate, Harry added, "this summer it seemed like, no matter what I did, I couldn't stay out of trouble. If I completed my chores on time at the end of the day, I was told that I completed them in the wrong order. If I obeyed an order to retrieve the mail, I was accused of doing so with an attitude even if I really didn't; I was careful to be respectful and answered with a 'yes ma'am' or 'yes sir' whenever I was spoken to. I could go on and on. Nothing I did was ever ok this summer." Harry finished. By then, he had tears in his eyes that threatened to fall.

Seeing this, Hermione took out her wand and warded their compartment. Although she had already taken the precaution of a silencing spell, she decided it would be best to make sure no one could walk in unwelcome. As an afterthought, she flicked her wand and the shade on the window was pulled down. There was no need for Harry to feel extra vulnerable. Looking over at Ron, she silently communicated her intentions to move over next to Harry. Ron nodded his head at her.

Knowing that Harry didn't like sharing any of this with them, Hermione decided to offer him comfort by sitting down next to him. She didn't say anything to him, but Harry knew that he was more than welcome to lean on her shoulder or ask for a hug. To her slight surprise, Harry did just that; he first leaned his head onto her shoulder and then, after she situated herself, Harry turned himself into her embrace for a hug just before he started to cry.

Hermione sighed as she looked over at Ron, who had his head in his hands, clearly at a loss of what to do. On the one hand, he was incredibly relieved that Harry would not have to suffer at the hands of his aunt and uncle for another ten months. On the other hand, he knew that this could not keep happening. His best friend was normally so composed, put together. But now, sitting in a compartment on the way to Hogwarts, he looked so fragile; Harry only ever cried openly, as far as Ron knew, when it was just the three of them. Never before had he broken down so easily.

When Ron looked up at his friends sitting awkwardly across from him, he saw that Harry had his eyes closed while Hermione carded her hand through his hair. In that moment, Harry looked peaceful.

"Is he asleep?" Ron asked.

Hermione nodded her head.

It was quiet for a moment before Ron spoke again. "We have to do something about this." He said. "This can't keep happening. We agreed to keep this to ourselves as long as we thought he wasn't in any great danger, but the way he said he couldn't seem to do anything right no matter how hard he tried, that scares me." Ron swallowed back the urge to vomit.

Hermione nodded her head once more. "I know. I was just thinking the same thing." She looked down at Harry's sleeping form, wondering how much rest he had been able to get over the course of the summer. He looked absolutely exhausted.

"He's not going to like this." Hermione stated. "He's probably going to hate us for awhile."

Ron nodded his head in acknowledgment. "It's what we have to do. His safety is at stake here."

Silence settled over them once again. For awhile, the two who were awake just listened to the sounds of the train in motion, vacantly looking out the window at the scenery that flashed by.

"How do you propose we handle this?" Ron asked. His sober attitude was a bit unnerving to Hermione. She missed the carefree Ron. At the same time, she was grateful that he was there to be helpful.

"We always said we would tell McGonagall." Hermione answered. "I say we go to her as soon as we get to the castle. We should get there in plenty of time to catch her before she has to attend to the first year students."

Ron nodded his head in agreement. "What about him?" He motioned towards Harry.

Hermione shook her head. "I haven't quite figured that one out yet."

"I'm thinking that it might actually work out better to give it some time. Not much, mind you. We could wait until at least tomorrow. Let's let him be tonight, but while he makes his way back to the tower after the feast, we make a break for it to Dumbledore's office and say that we need to have a meeting with him and McGonagall. We'll tell them about what's been going on these past few years. I don't think there's much we can do until we talk to them. They'll probably know what to do about it; I'm sure Harry is far from the first student to walk through the halls of Hogwarts who has been abused." Ron said.

Hermione couldn't get over how rational Ron was being. "It's settled then. Let's just survive the feast tonight, and then go from there." Hermione agreed.

Hermione yawned. "Go ahead and take a nap, Hermione." Ron said. "I'll stay awake in case he wakes up." Ron stood up to gather a pillow for Hermione to rest her head on and a blanked to cover both she and Harry.

"Thanks Ron." Hermione said.

Before falling asleep, Hermione looked down at the sleeping form of Harry. Try as she might, she had never been able to understand why Harry would not let them help him with the issues he had to deal with living at his relatives' home.

'_That changes today'_ she thought to herself. _'Today, Ron and I step up to the plate as best friends and take care of you, even if you don't want to be taken care of.'_

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><p>AN: *In this fic, Harry (and Ron for that matter) have always traveled to school on the train. Flying car incident didn't happen for the purpose of this fic. There may be some other events that did not/do not happen for the benefit of future chapters.

Please review!


	2. Something's Not Quite Right

A/N: Hi everyone! I could not believe the number of hits my story received, or the fact that I got the same amount of reviews it took an entire year for my other fic to receive, in the course of one evening, I decided I had to finish the second chapter and upload it tonight! That being said, I apologize for any grammatical/spelling errors I may have missed when I did my final read through. Enjoy the update!

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><p>Throughout the Welcoming Feast, Harry could not help but squirm on the hard benches. Although, he had to admit, the benches didn't seem to feel as hard as he would have thought he remembered. Just as that thought passed through his mind, he caught Hermione's eye.<p>

Turning to Hermione, in a hushed whisper, he asked, "Did you…" he trailed off as she nodded confirmation to his unasked question. Apparently, she had been thinking more clearly that he was, and managed to cast a cushioning charm on his seat without him noticing until just then.

Harry smiled his thanks at his brilliant best friend, who smiled right back at him before focusing her attention back on the Headmaster. He was currently welcoming the first year students to Hogwarts, congratulating them on having been sorted into their respective houses.

As the speech continued, Harry had great difficulty trying to focus on what was being said. He felt extremely tried and kept zoning in and out. If it had not been for the throbbing in his backside, he may have fallen asleep all together.

Harry heard the sounds of applause erupting all around him and snapped back to attention, applauding along with the rest of the Great Hall.

"Dig in!" exclaimed Professor Dumbledore, right before the four long House tables magically filled with dinner entrees and side dishes prepared by the house elves staffed in the kitchen. As always, it looked absolutely wonderful.

Harry shifted in his seat so he was facing the table, Ron sat to his left and Hermione directly in front of him. Ron immediately served himself a heaping portion of mashed potatoes, green beans, chicken and a roll.

Hermione, in her typical fashion, rolled her eyes at Ron's lack of table manners and served herself as well.

Looking at Harry just sitting there, Hermione asked, "Aren't you hungry, Harry?"

Harry seemed to be a million miles away. After hearing his name he asked, "What?"

Hermione and Ron shared a glance. "I asked if you were hungry." Hermione repeated.

Harry looked around at the mounds of food all over the table. "Oh, yes, I'll eat." He said, grabbing for some chicken.

Hermione and Ron watched as Harry filled his plate. It wasn't as much as Hermione would like to see him eat, but she knew that after a summer of being fed minimally, it usually took awhile for Harry to build up his appetite.

Dinner conversation was light. The trio discussed what classes they were looking forward to, which ones they were dreading. Hermione eagerly pointed out that it was their O.W.L.S. year, and that it was never too early to start studying. She notified the boys that she would be creating a study schedule for the three of them once they received their schedules the following morning.

Once everyone had finished with dinner, the plates, along with all of the left over food from the meal, vanished from the tables, only to be replaced by new dishes and an array of delectable looking desserts.

Harry noticed, for the first time, that there were also little bags of yellow candies included in the sweets display. He smiled. "Looks like Dumbledore is trying to share his love of lemon drops with the rest of the castle." He chuckled.

Hermione and Ron looked where he was pointing and started to laugh. Pretty soon, most of the Great Hall was taken over by laughter as they realized that the Headmaster had certainly been responsible for the addition to the dessert spread.

Looking up to the head table, Harry saw that the Headmaster was smiling broadly, enjoying a tart, and surveying his students as they discovered his favorite treat wrapped up in neat little bags to be taken back to their dormitories when they were finished.

Taking a look at what he had to choose from for dessert, Harry settled on a slice of blueberry pie, adding a healthy portion of whipped cream to the top. Once he was finished, Harry decided he would sit and wait for Hermione and Ron to finish as well so the three of them could make their way to the Gryffindor tower together.

Hermione, having seen that Harry was done eating and appeared to be waiting for her and Ron, was just about finished her portion of jell-o when she saw an opportunity before her. Even though she was just about full, she served herself a second helping of jell-o right on top of what she had yet to finish. Ron gave her a questioning look. Rather than answer him, she just shook her head and glared. Ron seemed to understand just he put another over-sized bite of brownie in his mouth.

"Harry," Hermione said. "You look awfully tired. Why don't you go up ahead of us?" she asked.

Harry looked at her and then Ron. Eying their plates, he yawned. He really wanted to be able to wait for his friends so they could walk up to the tower together, but he was just so tired, and he really wanted to get off of the damned bench; even though Hermione had cast a cushioning charm for him, it didn't alleviate close to half of his discomfort.

Ron, seeing Harry's hesitation, added, "Go on, mate. We'll be up soon. Go ahead to the dorm and we will see you when we get there. If you're asleep when I get up there, we'll both just see you in the morning. But if not, maybe the three of us can meet in the common room for a game of Exploding Snap, sound good?"

Harry felt convinced. Knowing that his friends still wished to spend time with him if he wasn't too tired made him feel good. Smiling, he said, "Thanks. I'll see you up there," and carefully got up, making his way up to the Gryffindor tower.

As he walked out of the Great Hall with a few of the other students, Hermione looked to Ron. "Are you sure you're ready to do this?" Hermione asked him.

Ron ran a hand over his face and shook his head. "I don't think this is something anyone is ever ready for." He said solemnly. That being said, Ron set down his for and pushed his plate away from himself. He suddenly had no appetite.

Although she had just served herself that second helping of jell-o, she wasn't hungry anymore either. Hating to waste food, she sighed dejectedly, and mimicked Ron's movements.

Mustering all of their Gryffindor courage, Hermione and Ron made eye contact and decided to head towards Dumbledore's office. Glancing up at the head table, the two students saw that the Headmaster was still sitting in his chair, but decided they could wait for him outside his office door; they had a lot to talk about before discussing their concerns with the man.

With their hearts in their throats, both feeling a bit nauseous, the two friends made their way out of the Great Hall.

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><p>Meanwhile, up at the head table, Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall were engaging in a conversation. Out of the corner of his eye, Albus noticed that some of the students had begun to vacate the Great Hall, making their way toward their dormitories. Looking over at the Gryffindor table, he watched Harry stand up from the table quite stiffly before slowly walking out of the Great Hall. Rather than getting up to join their friend as he originally suspected they would, Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger remained seated; something about them didn't seem quite right.<p>

By this time, Minerva noticed that Albus was no longer paying attention to their conversation. "What is it, Albus?" she asked. "Is something wrong?"

Albus watched the exchange between Ron and Hermione before the got up, looked at him sitting at the head table, and then exited the Great Hall as well.

"I'm not quite sure, Minerva. Something seems to be a bit off with our Golden Trio." He said.

Severus Snape, who was sat to Albus' right, let out a dark laugh. "If something is up, I can guarantee the three of them are planning some sort of mischief for their first night back." He drawled.

"Now Severus," Minerva scolded. "You stop that nonsense this instance. The students haven't even been back for more than a couple of hours, and already you are acting like the sinicist of the dungeons. You leave those lions alone." She continued with her reprimand.

Severus just rolled his eyes.

"Hey, I saw that, young man."

Severus sighed. "Sorry, mum." He groveled.

"That's better." Minerva smiled. "You should finish your tea. You have new little snakes to welcome before it gets too late." She instructed.

It took all of the self control Severus possessed to not roll his eyes again. Sometimes his mother just didn't know when to back off; he was a grown man damn it!

Severus did as he was told and finished his tea. Just as he was getting ready to push back his chair, Albus spoke up. "Severus."

The younger man looked over to the older man expectantly. "Yes dad?" He asked.

Albus smiled at his son before giving him a stern look. "Do remember to be kind to your new house members. They are, after all, just eleven years old, and they do not need to feel scared on their first night in the castle."

Severus gave his father a quizzical look. "What in Merlin's name are you talking about?" he asked.

Albus' expression became grave. "I seem to recall that, last year, a few of the new Slytherin first years ended up crying themselves to sleep because they thought that, if they did not obey the rules of their Head of House, they would be chopped up into little bits and used as potions ingredients."

Severus' face paled at that. "Oh, that. Well…if you would have seen the group of students standing there before me last year, looking at me like they could get into no end of mischief, you would have come up with just about anything to keep them in line too." Severus defended himself. "Besides, why wait until now to mention this to me?" Severus asked accusingly.

Albus shook his head. "That, my boy, does not matter. What matters, is that my students feel safe within the walls of my castle, and that my staff, not to mention my own _son_, makes sure of that. Are we clear?" There was a tone of finality in Albus' voice.

"Yes sir." Severus answered.

"Good. Now that we are clear on that, I believe that your mother and I have an appointment with a couple of students in my office." The older man stated.

Minerva looked at her husband quizzically. Looking at the spot where the Golden Trio had once been sitting, she understood what the man meant. With a few final words of goodnight, the adults split off into their different destinations.

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><p>Please Review!<p> 


	3. A Difficult Conversation

A/N: I would like to start off by thanking all of you for making this fic incredibly fun to write! I have never felt so connected to my readers. Thank you to those of you who reviewed! Thanks to you, I have been driven to update as soon as I can!

I would like to give a special to thank you to Looney Lulu. I have had the privilege to converse a bit with her over the last couple days, and she had really kept my spirits up about my fic. One thing she asked is if I would be including a particular character. Although, when I first started writing the fic, I had not intended to, I have become inspired to do so. That being said, if any of you have any requests, I would like to extend the offer to share them with me. I really want to make this into a great fic, and I feel that the only way for that to be possible is if I know I am writing something my readers _actually_ want to read!

Ok. Enough from me. On with the story!

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><p>Hermione and Ron did not have to wait long before the Headmaster and his wife made their way to the stone gargoyle that guarded Dumbledore's office. Stealing a last glance at each other, the pair mustered up every last ounce of Gryffindor courage they possessed; this was <em>not<em> going to be an easy conversation.

As they waited for the professors to make it the rest of the way down the hall, Ron noticed that Hermione had gone incredibly silent and resorted to chewing her bottom lip.

"If you keep doing that, you'll probably draw blood." He said. Hermione looked straight at Ron, took a deep breath, and removed her bottom lip from her teeth. She nodded at him.

"We're doing the right thing." She stated. More than anything, it seemed like Hermione was trying to reassure herself rather than Ron, but he nodded his agreement none the less.

"Absolutely," Ron agreed. He only hoped that he sounded more confident than he felt.

The pair looked once more to the nearing forms of their professors as they heard their footsteps echoing closer and closer.

Upon arriving in front of the stone gargoyle, Dumbledore smiled at the two students. "Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

The students both audibly gulped. It was Hermione who was able to find her voice first.

"Headmaster, there is something that Ron and I wish to speak to you about…privately." Hermione could not believe how much her voice was betraying her; normally she was the epitome of calm, cool and collected, but the situation at hand unsettled her greatly.

Seeing this, Albus muttered the password to his office, "Gumballs," and stepped onto the rotating stairs, indicating that everyone should follow his lead. Once they reached the top of the staircase, Albus removed his wand from his robes and touched the tip to a knot in the wood of the door; the spot that he touched illuminated a faint blue before the door swung open.

Upon entering his office, Albus made his way to a cozy seating set-up by the fireplace. He ushered the students forward, offering seats for them on an overstuffed sofa.

"Can I offer you some tea?" Albus asked. He hoped that the pair would say yes because it looked like they could use a calming drink.

"Yes please, sir." Ron answered.

While Albus set about calling one of the house elves, ordering some left over treats from dessert as an afterthought, Ron and Hermione sat anxiously in front of the fire, which had been lit by a wave of the Headmaster's hand.

"Albus," Professor McGonagall interrupted. "I have to head up to Gryffindor tower so I may welcome the new first years. I shouldn't be more than a few minutes if I take the floo."

Looking over at the apparently distraught students sitting on his couch, Albus nodded. He knew that his wife typically preferred to avoid flooing into the Gryffindor common room; she felt that it would make her lions fear that she would pop in at any moment. Not that she minded instilling a little fear here and there (Albus would forever insist that this was a trait their son had picked up from his mother), she just wanted to make sure that her students felt comfortable in their living quarters. After all, they lived there for just about ten months out of the year.

"That might be a good idea for tonight. I know you don't typically like to do that, but it seems that we have a fairly serious situation to deal with, and the sooner the better."

With that, Minerva grabbed a handful of floo powder and stepped through the fire place.

Making his way over to Ron and Hermione, Albus put a smile on his face. "Would I be correct to assume that something is troubling the two of you?" he asked gently. Although it was quite obvious, he had learned over the years that, when wanting students to open up to him about something, it worked best to play ignorant.

Both students gulped before nodding. Ron spoke first.

"It's about Harry, professor."

Albus had thought as such.

"What about our Mr. Potter?" He asked gently.

The pair before him was quiet for a moment. "Well…" Hermione trailed off as a house elf popped into the room; she was holding a tray that looked entirely too large for her to be carrying, adorned with a tea set and sweets.

"Thank you, Mitzi. This looks absolutely wonderful. You have truly outdone yourself!" Albus praised the elf as she placed the tray on the coffee table before them. Once finished with her task, he smiled broadly before giving a deep curtsy to the room before her, and popped back to the kitchens.

Before anything more could be said, Minerva walked back through the fireplace. Surveying the occupants before her, she began to fret about what might be wrong. While she was in the Gryffindor common room, she hadn't been able to catch a glimpse of Mr. Potter, leading her to believe that this conversation had to do with him. Making eye contact with her husband, he nodded his confirmation to her suspicion.

Albus gave an encouraging smile to his wife, slightly reminding her that it would do more harm than good for her to start worrying before they actually knew what was going on.

"Sorry for the interruption," Minerva apologized as she sat down next to her husband.

"No worries," Albus said. "Miss Granger was just about to inform me of a concern that she and Mr. Weasley have about Mr. Potter." He informed her.

Taking that as her queue to continue, Hermione cleared her throat. "Well…" she tried again. "Wow, this isn't easy, I'm sorry." She apologized to her professors.

"Don't worry about it, Miss Granger. I am sure that whatever it is you have to share with us is very important. Take your time. We are all ears." Minerva smiled encouragingly at the anxious teen before her.

Hermione nodded. Figuring that it may be easier to get to the point first and explain the details second, she said, "Harry is being abused by his aunt and uncle."

In that moment, Hermione thought she was going to be sick. She had hoped that getting it all out in the open would take a weight off her shoulders; instead, she was overwhelmed by the dense silence in the room, which felt like it could suffocate her.

Not knowing what she should do next, Hermione looked over at Ron, who looked entirely too pale, then to her professors, who she wished would just say _something_.

Professor McGonagall answered her silent prayer. "What do you mean, exactly, when you say that he is a-abused?" she asked.

Knowing that it had been incredibly difficult for his best friend to get the ball rolling on this conversation, Ron felt that it was his turn to contribute.

"I think it might be best if we start from the beginning, which would bring us back to our second year." He said. Ron took a few moments to think before continuing. "Back at the beginning of our second year, during our train ride to Hogwarts, Hermione and I realized that Harry was acting a bit strange. When we had left to go home just a couple months prior, he had been in fairly good spirits. Yes, he groveled a bit about having to go back to his relatives after spending so long at a place the really felt like home, but nothing sounded alarming. I can only speak for myself when I say this, but I just thought he was sad in the same way I was; sad to be leaving my freedom at school to go back to living under my mum's watchful eye for an entire summer."

Hermione nodded her agreement at Ron's statement.

"But when we came back for our second year, Harry seemed more subdued. He was quiet and looked like he was trying to be careful about how he moved around the compartment. Don't ask me how I remember this so vividly, but then, just when we heard the warning whistle signaling that the train was about to pull out of the station, Harry sat down _very_ slowly and let out this hiss of pain that made us both startle and look up at him."

"Yeah," Hermione agreed. "I remember that, when he winced like that, something had to up; Harry has always been very in control of himself in regards to how he reacts to things." She paused for a moment, thinking back to what had happened next. "When Harry realized that he had been caught, he looked so upset, like he could have just cried. I know that by that point I had only known Harry for about a year, but it just wasn't like him. Eventually, Ron and I were able to get him to talk."

Ron nodded. As he began to speak, Albus couldn't help but notice the far away look in his student's eyes, like he was a million miles away. "That was the day I made the biggest mistake of my life; I made a promise to Harry that I would not tell anyone that his aunt and uncle were hitting him, making him go without meals for long periods of time, treating him like a slave…the list goes on and on!" He huffed.

"I made that mistake too, Ron. At the time, we thought we were doing the right thing. It was the only way Harry agreed to even tell us about what was going on in the first place." Hermione placed a comforting hand on Ron's knee.

Albus and Minerva sat adjacent to their students, not exactly sure what to say; both adults were quiet for a moment.

"So," Minerva began. "If you made this promise to Harry that you would not tell us about what was going on, not that I am against it, but, what makes today different? Why have you suddenly decided to tell us what has been going on?"

Hermione's cheeks blushed red. "Well," she said. "This morning, when we were getting ourselves settled on the train, as per usual, Harry was moving around all stiff and such. It has been part of our usual start of term routine to have Harry fill us in on how life with his relatives is going. Today, when we started talking to him about it, something was different…very different."

"In the past," Ron interjected. "Harry has told us that he has been able to see it coming when he has done something wrong; for instance, not getting his full list of chores done by his deadline. But, this summer, Harry said that, no matter what he did, he was always in trouble for something or other, even if it didn't make sense. He never knew when he was going to get it, not really. It sounded like he got it more often than not."

"So, to answer your question, professor," said Hermione. "Part of the deal we made with Harry about keeping his secret, was that we would do so as long as we were not under the impression that he was in any real danger. No, I did not care for the idea that Harry was being physically punished for stupid little things here and there, but he assured us that he was usually able to avoid it. In past summers, Harry's aunt and uncle seem to have reserved physical punishment for when they believed he did something _real_ freakish, like any accidental magic. But when Harry told us that, this summer, no matter what he did, he never seemed to be able to do anything right, was never able to avoid their rage, we felt that he was no longer safe."

Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore looked at one another. The two of them took a moment to consider what they had just learned about their student.

"I cannot believe I have never picked up on any of this before," said Professor McGonagall. She was deeply disturbed by all of this. "I am his Head of House; part of my duty is to be more intoned to my students so things like this do not fly under the radar."

"What about me?" Albus asked. "I am not better. As the Headmaster of this school, I am supposed to protect the welfare of all of the students who walk the hallways of this castle. All I ever wanted to do was protect him from the evils of our world. Instead, I put him into the hands of evil in the form of his aunt and uncle. I never should have left him with those muggles. You told me that very night that there was something wrong with them."

Albus shook his head and looked off into the distance, a look of vacant expression settling in his features.

"Please don't blame yourselves, professors." Ron interjected. "Harry has always been very secretive about this. It took Hermione and me a whole year to figure out what was going on, and we live with the guy! We spend just about every day with him, go to the same classes, sit at meals together, study together, hang out in the same common room; heck, I even sleep in the bed next to the bloke! Harry is very good about keeping things to himself."

"What Ron and I were hoping was that, regardless of what Harry has gone through in the past, maybe he could be given the chance for a better future. With Voldemort gone, he doesn't need to have this cloud of doom over his head any longer." Hermione said.

"What exactly are you requesting, Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked.

Hermione took a deep breath and looked to Ron, who nodded his head in encouragement. "We think it would be best if Harry no longer had to worry about going back to his relatives at the end of the school year."

"He already spends as much time possible away from them," said Ron. "During the holidays, if it weren't for the fact that my family invites him to our place, he would surely stay at the castle. As a matter of fact, that's exactly what he did during our first year!"

"Please don't let him go back to his relatives!" Hermione exclaimed. There were tears in her eyes by now, and she took a second to wipe away one that had escaped.

* * *

><p>After discussing some more of the teens' concerns, as well as assuring them that he would do everything in his power to make sure Harry would be safe, Professor McGonagall escorted Hermione and Ron back to Gryffindor tower through the floo. Upon her return, she found a deeply troubled Albus sitting at his desk.<p>

"What are we going to do, Albus? Surely we cannot leave the boy with his relatives? You heard everything his friends had to say. It took a lot of courage for them to confront us about this; there must be something we can do." She asserted.

Albus nodded his head slowly.

"I have been thinking very hard about our options." He said. "There is no option, we have to do something about his living situation; I believe I already have the answer to that. However, I believe the question now is how to confront Mr. Potter."

Minerva nodded her understanding. Harry could be very strong headed, as his friends had stated, and the likelihood of him being comfortable with his professors knowing about his situation was very slim.

"What do you propose?" Minerva asked her husband. She had a feeling that the gears in his brain had been turning throughout the entire conversation. While she couldn't be completely sure, she believed she had a good idea about what her husband's plans might be for Harry's living situation.

"What time is it?" Albus asked.

Looking at her watch, Minerva answered, "Half past nine. Why?"

"Severus should be in his quarters by now, should he not?"

A smile tugged at the old woman's lips. "Yes, I would say so. Shall I go fetch him?" she asked knowingly.

Albus made eye contact with his wife. "Yes, please. That would be wonderful."

* * *

><p>I hope you liked it! Please review!<p> 


	4. Making Amends With The Past

A/N: I hope you all enjoy this next chapter! It turned out to be incredibly long (almost 4,000 words without the A/N). I had originally intended to post two chapters this weekend, but this one ended up being much longer than I had anticipated, and I didn't really think it would be appropriate to break it up into two chapter. That being said, I do have most of tomorrow (Sunday) off, and I have plans to work on the next chapter, so there is still hope yet!

Just as a heads up, this chapter is so long because I really tried to answer a lot of the questions that kept popping up in the reviews in regards to how Voldemort was defeated, how Snape is Albus and Minerva's son, etc. For those of you who mentioned that you were looking forward to seeing more interactions between Albus, Severus and Minerva, I hope this was what you were looking for! So, without further ado, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

* * *

><p>As he strolled through the hallways of the castle with his mother, Severus couldn't shake the feeling that his father was up to something. With it being the first night that the castle was filled with students, he knew that his parents, just like him, typically tried to enjoy one last evening of peace and calm before classes commenced the following morning.<p>

"Honestly, mum. Whatever this is about could not have waited till morning? This is the only night out of the school year that I do not have to stay up late grading papers, brewing potions for Poppy, patrolling the halls for students after hours –"

"That's quite enough, young man!" Minerva interrupted.

"Don't call me 'young man'!" Severus snapped back. "I am not a child anymore, I am a _grown_ man!" He insisted with a raised voice.

"Oh, and I suppose your behavior at this moment supports that theory." Minerva stated with a cool attitude.

Severus glared at his mother. He knew that she would have a round of comebacks for whatever he may be tempted to say next, so he decided to just keep his mouth shut.

Minerva glanced at her son as they rounded the last corner leading to the corridor of Albus' office. "Wise decision, Severus." She said with a smirk.

Severus' anger peaked. Now the woman was simply trying to get a rise out of him! But no, he would not stoop to her level. His mother may have taught him an encyclopedia's worth of sarcastic and snide remarks over the years, but she had also taught that it was easy to get the best of someone by simply ignoring them as well.

As they approached the stone gargoyle guarding the staircase that led to Albus' office, Minerva gave the password, "gumballs."

Severus rolled his eyes. "I take it dad has found another new sweet he enjoys?" Severus inquired. "Unfortunately, yes." Minerva answered. "That man ingests enough sugar as it is, as though he needed to find something else to fall in love with."

As the two entered the office, they found Albus sitting at his office, looking intently at some paperwork scattered across his desk. When he didn't look up from what he was doing, Minerva cleared her throat to get his attention.

"Ah, Minerva, Severus, if you'll give me but a moment I shall be right with you." he said.

Severus raised an eyebrow before looking quizzically to Minerva. Trying not to give away what she already knew, Minerva refused to look at her son, instead looking straight ahead, patiently waiting for her husband to finish what he was working on.

When he finished signing his name on the bottom of a lengthy document, Albus smiled up at the two standing before him. In light of the issue he was currently trying to solve, as he looked upon his son, Albus could not help but remember what it was like the day he became a father.

FLASH BACK

"How is the enrollment list for this year looking, Minerva?" Albus inquired from his desk. There was only a week left until the first of September, and Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, along with his wife, Minerva McGonagall-Dumbledore, the Deputy Headmistress, were trying to get the final arrangements in order for the new term.

As she looked over her list of students, she was happy to note that all of the students who were due to return to the castle for their second year and up were, in fact, returning. However, as she glanced at her list of new first years, there was still a question mark next to the name _Severus Snape_.

"Well," she began to answer her husband's question. "All seems to be in order except for one Severus Snape. He is due to be a first year student this year, and we have yet to receive confirmation that he will be attending come the first of September." She said.

Albus wrinkled his brow in thought.

"That's a bit odd, isn't it?" He asked.

Minerva nodded confirmation. "Most students send confirmation within the first week of receiving their letter." She said. That being said, she looked next to the name in question a little closer. "According to our records, this student's letter was sent out at the same time as all of the others, back in July. Do you suppose he is muggle born? Perhaps his family doesn't take the letter seriously?" Minerva speculated.

Albus thought about that possibility. "You said the name was Snape?" he asked.

"Yes, Severus Snape." Minerva confirmed.

Albus shook his head. "Well, if that is the case, the child is not a muggle born. In fact, he is none other than the son of Eileen Prince." Albus stated.

"Eileen Prince? Wasn't she known for playing Gobstones?" Minerva asked.

Albus nodded. "Yes, that's the one. So, even if she married a muggle, which, coming from her blood line would be a surprise to me, any child of hers would be _at least_ a half blood."

Minerva was lost in thought for a moment. "If I'm not mistaken," Minerva began slowly. "She died a few years ago."

"Unfortunately, you are very much correct." Albus stated gravely.

There was a moment of silence.

"What shall we do, Albus?"

Albus was lost in thought. Having been married to the man for more than 20 years, Minerva recognized the look on her husband's face. He was deeply troubled about something, apparently lost in thought.

"I must go to him myself." Albus spoke after a long moment. "Something does not feel right about this and I need to know that the boy is safe. I shall leave at once."

Upon locating the residence of Severus Snape, Albus found a battered and bruised child knocked out, slumped in the corner of the room, his father passed out after a night of heavy drinking.

After assessing the condition of the small child, Albus surveyed his surroundings. Knowing that he had to both think and move quickly, Albus decided it would be best to take the boy with him that night. But, before he could do that, he had to do something about the boy's father.

Based on the physical condition of the child alone, Albus did not feel comfortable with the possibility of him being returned to the care of his father ever again.

On a gut impulse, Albus decided to wipe the man's recollection of ever having a son. Once the task was complete, he gathered the small child in his arms and apparated back to Hogwarts.

When Albus apparated back into his office with a bundle in his arms, Minerva didn't know what to think. At first, she was not sure what he was carrying. However, upon closer inspection, she was able to make out the features of a small boy.

"Is that…" Minerva couldn't finish her question. She didn't have to. One look into her husband's eyes confirmed her fear.

"We must take him to see Poppy at once." Minerva said in a business like tone.

Carrying the boy in the direction of their living quarters, Albus spoke over his shoulder. "Actually, I would prefer it if we could ask her to come here. I'm afraid I may have used poor judgment when I decided to apparate back to the castle. I believe it may be safest if we try not to move the boy around too much."

Minerva already had her head in the fireplace and was trying to contact Poppy. A minute later, she was pulling away from the fire, making room for Poppy to step through.

"Where is he?" The Medi-Witch asked briskly.

"I believe Albus brought him to our bedroom." Minerva answered.

As Poppy busied herself with her patient, Minerva pulled Albus out of the room. "What did you do to that boy's father?" she asked pointedly.

For the first time since he found Severus Snape, Albus felt guilty. He didn't want to meet his wife's calculating gaze, but mustered up all of his Gryffindor courage to do so.

"I erased his memory of ever having a son." Albus managed just above a whisper.

Minerva just stared at him for a long, hard moment. She briefly looked into their bedroom before speaking again.

"And what do you propose we do about him? Surely you don't mean to turn him over to the Ministry to have him placed in a random home." She said with a touch more warmth than before.

"Well, I had hoped that maybe you might have an idea as to what should be done with him." Albus answered with a twinkle in his eyes.

Minerva sighed. Albus knew that she had taken quite the emotional blow when it was discovered that she was incapable of bearing children. If the issue had been with conception, there were plenty of alternative methods the couple could have attempted in order to get pregnant. However, the issue Minerva had was with her uterus, therefore, unfix-able.

"Are you sure we can do this, Albus? After all, there is the chance that the boy will not like us, or wish to go back to his father and then become angry when he discovers that will not be a possibility due to your rash thinking. I would absolutely _love_ to have a son, you know that, but is it what is best for the child?"

END FLASHBACK

As it turned out, adopting Severus Snape was probably the best thing Albus and Minerva had ever done, for both him and for them.

Having been married to the man for over 40 years, Minerva recognized the look on her husband's face. While he may be physically sitting before she and their son, his mind was years in the past.

"Is he ok?" Severus asked.

Minerva smiled softly. "He'll be fine. Just give him a moment."

"Severus," Albus greeted as he snapped out of his trance. "So glad you could make it."

Still not really understanding what was going on, Severus just nodded his head. "What is it exactly that you wished to see me for, dad? If you don't mind, it would be nice to get a move on so I can get some decent sleep before being faced with the brats in the morning." He said snidely.

Minerva smacked her son on the back of the head. It wasn't very hard, but he definitely felt it, as well as understood the message behind. Regardless, Severus made a show of rubbing the spot she hit and scowling at her.

"Now, now you two" Albus chuckled. "Actually Severus, I requested your presence here for a rather important matter."

He indicated that the two should sit in the two chairs situated opposite his desk.

Albus wasn't exactly sure where to begin, so he looked to his wife for assistance.

"Severus," Minerva stated. "This evening, after the Welcoming Feast, your father and I received a visit from a couple of students who were concerned about their friend. As it turns out, this friend of theirs is in a considerable amount of danger at home."

Albus let the information settle for a little before he continued.

"With the safety of this student being questionable, your mother and I believe it would be best to have him removed from the home he currently occupies during the summer holidays."

Severus picked up a slip in his father's last comment; his dad had mentioned that _he_, the student, would need to be removed from the home her currently occupies during the _summer_. Of course, knowing his dad, that had not been a slip. Rather, the man was trying to clue him in about what was going on without actually spelling it out for him.

Having a general idea of what direction this was headed and who was involved, although he desperately hoped he was mistaken, Severus asked, "And what does this have to do with me?"

"Well, Severus, I believe you know _exactly_ what this has to do with you. As you have most probably already guessed, your mother and I were hoping you might be able to become a temporary guardian for one of our students." Albus stated offhandedly.

Severus narrowed his eyes. "And just _who_ might this student of ours be?"

A blanket of silence fell over the room while both Albus and Minerva had a silent battle over who should be the one to break the news. Not wanting to waste any more of his own evening, Severus spoke. "Let me save you the trouble. It's Harry Potter, is that correct?"

Minerva glanced sideways at her son as Albus looked at said son with pride.

"Oh, come on you two! Really, that's quite enough of that. I picked up on dad's _intentional _slip. First he referred to this student as he, cutting out all females. Second, he made the comment about him only going home during the summer. We all know that there is only one student in this castle who only ever goes home for the summer. Now, what I would like to know is why you are asking _me_ to look after the brat!" Severus thundered. His patience was wearing very thin.

"Severus Tobias Albus Snape Dumbledore! What did I tell you about acting your age? If you do not cut this out right this _instant_ you will be in a great deal of trouble, young man!" Minerva seethed.

Severus knew better than to argue, no matter how much he hated being called "young man." It was one thing to argue with his mother if she had been yelling, but right now, she was dangerously calm, but still notably angry. This was when she was the most volatile. One wrong statement on his part and he would be on the receiving end of a very long tongue lashing.

"Sorry mum." Severus apologized.

Minerva took a deep breath; now that she had her wayward son's full attention, it was time to set things straight.

"What is it that you have against the boy, Severus?" she asked.

Severus took a long time to answer. There were so many thoughts racing through his mind. Did he really hate the brat? No. Not really. But he wasn't particularly fond of him either. His parents would never understand, even if he tried to explain his feelings, and he told them as such.

"You wouldn't understand." He said dejectedly.

"Try us." Albus said with a note of finality.

Severus took a few deep breaths.

"I don't _hate_ the boy. I just…I don't know. I don't know _what_ I think of him." Severus paused for a moment. He needed to think his answer through because he knew that neither of his parents would back off until they were satisfied.

"I still feel responsible for the death of his parents." There. He said it. Severus had always felt responsible for the death of Lily and James Potter. In school, Severus had been best friends with Lily until their sixth year; that was the year he had rebelled.

Being the Headmaster and Deputy Headmistress' son was not the easiest thing in the world, especially when you were a Slytherin and your mother was the Head of House for Gryffindor. It wasn't so bad when he was younger, but as he grew older, the teasing started to bother him, and he never felt like he had the opportunity to be just another student in the castle.

So, he rebelled. At the end of sixth year, he and Lily had a falling out. That was the summer that Severus became a Death Eater. Yes, he had been young, but at the time, the Dark Lord believed that it would be to his advantage to have the Headmaster's son in his ranks.

Just before school was due to start up again for their seventh year, Severus realized that he was in way over his head, and he wanted out. That's when he contacted Lily. Lily had helped convince Severus to confront his parents about the mistake he had made. He was incredibly sorry about what he had done, and although he knew deep down that going to his parents for help was his only option, Lily, ever the Gryffindor, had been the one to give him the courage to do just that.

Albus and Minerva had been deeply troubled, to say the least, about what their son had done. They knew that something had been off about him all summer, but they had just thought that it was typical teenage stuff.

For awhile, Severus' parents blamed themselves for what he had done. But, after awhile, he had been able to explain what had been going on. Although it was incredibly difficult to deal with, the Dumbledore family worked through the hard times as one, trying to figure out what to do next.

Deciding that it would be best to handle the situation just like any other indiscretion Severus made, there had been a family meeting held. At that family meeting, it was decided that Severus would become a spy. Although he was incredibly young, only 17 years old, it was what he insisted on doing.

His parents reluctantly agreed knowing that there was little else that could be done.

With that all said and done, that was the summer that Severus received the spanking of his _life_, not to mention his longest ever grounding sentence of three months.

Smiling darkly at the memory, his parents patiently waiting, Severus felt more confident about what he needed to say.

"Even though I became a spy, I never forgave myself for the fact that Lily and James were murdered, or for the fact that Harry was supposed to be killed that night as well. After being given a second chance to have Lily in my life as my best friend, and then finally getting along with James, even though it was at Lily's insistence, I just always felt like there was something that I should have been able to do to prevent their death."

Albus and Minerva continued to wait patiently.

"Every time I look at Potter, I see James. But then, I look into his eyes, and I see Lily. It's pure _torture_ sometimes. Add on top of that the fact that I have Potter to thank for ridding us of the Dark Lord, it's just too much sometimes!"

Severus slumped in his chair and put his head in his hands.

"First off," Albus said. "How can you be upset that Harry defeated the Dark Lord? After twenty years of serving him, I quite well remember the night during the Tri Wizard Tournament when you felt the burning of your Mark, just to look at it and see it disappear."

FLASHBACK

It was getting late. After seeing two students already drop out of the Task, Albus Dumbledore paced back and forth in front of the stands, waiting for the return of the Hogwarts Champions.

As he turned on his heel to march in the opposite direction he had been, Albus watched Severus grab his forearm out of the corner of his eye.

"Severus?" he inquired. He watched as his son walked over to a more secluded area and pulled back his sleeve.

"Severus, what is it?" Albus asked with more authority in his voice.

"It…my Mark is b-burning. The only time it ever h-hurt this much was when I first g-got it." Severus panted.

Then, as both men looked at the forearm before them, they witnessed the Dark symbol slowly vanish.

"Dad?" Severus let the question hang in the air.

Albus grabbed his son's forearm and ran his fingers over it gently.

"Lord Voldemort has been killed."

Relief ran through Severus' veins before he could stop it; he didn't want to get his hopes up before he should.

"Are you certain?" he asked timidly, his voice breaking a little.

Albus nodded. "There is no other way that Mark could be removed. With dark magic that strong, the only way to remove a Mark like that would be for the possessor of such magic to die at the hand of good."

END FLASHBACK

Harry had come back with the body of Cedric Diggory shortly after that. As it turned out, Harry and Voldemort had dueled in the graveyard. When their spells connected, Harry and Voldemort struggled to gain power over the other until wisps of past victims began to circle the pair. Momentarily distracted by the phenomenon, Voldemort lost concentration, giving Harry the opportunity to push back with all his might, causing his killing curse to backfire through Voldemort's own wand, this defeating the Dark Lord.

"I don't blame him for defeating the Dark Lord. I just…I hate feeling indebted to a 16 year old." Severus grouched.

Minerva let that one slide. Instead, she used a different tactic.

"Well, instead of keeping all of this inside, why not repay the Potter family by taking Harry in?" She asked tactfully.

Severus looked up questioningly.

"Just think about it. If you feel responsible for the death of Lily and James, which you are not, perhaps you could honor their memory by looking after their son for them."

She let that sink in before continuing.

"As for Harry, if you did indeed take him in, you could technically settle the score. You wouldn't have to feel as though you owed him anything anymore because you would be giving him a safe home away from his sorry excuse for relatives. What do you think?"

Albus smiled at his wife knowingly.

Severus sat up in his chair and sighed deeply. Everything his mother said made perfect sense. That didn't mean that he had to like it one bit though.

After a moment of contemplation, Severus looked up at his parents.

"I'll do it. I will become Harry Potter's temporary guardian."

* * *

><p>Late that night, Albus and Minerva lay in bed together, both unable to sleep and lost in thought.<p>

"What are you thinking about, Min?" Albus asked.

Minerva sighed deeply.

"Are we doing the right thing? About Severus I mean." She asked.

Albus chuckled. "Of course we are, my dear. The two were made for each other! They will fight, of course. But, in the end, I think they are just what the other needs."

Minerva smiled at the thought. She could just picture Severus and Harry seated at the dinner table over the holidays, arguing about something stupid just for the sake of arguing. It seemed that they could both be pretty thick headed at times.

"How do you propose we approach Mr. Potter about all of this? You know how he hates being kept out of the loop when it comes to making important decisions about his life." She reminded him.

"It's not going to be easy." Albus stated gravely. "I have been thinking about our options, and I believe it would be best to include Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger on this one. Since they were the ones to bring it to our attention, and without his consent, it might be beneficial for him to see that they have had his best interest at heart. What do you think?

Minerva thought about that for a moment. "Do you really think that they will agree with our decision to appoint Severus as his legal guardian, regardless of the fact that it is only temporary?"

She couldn't see it, but Minerva had a feeling that her husband's eyes were twinkling. Just after making the comment about this guardianship being temporary, she realized that her husband had other plans.

"I will send a letter to our Trio first thing in the morning." He said. "Instead of staying up till the wee hours of the morning, speculating the what-if's of all of this, I think you and I should try and get some rest. We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."

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><p>AN: Dun, dun, dun! I hope this turned out ok! The next chapter will FINALLY have Harry in it! I have been very excited to include him again. The next chapter should be the last of the technical base to the story, and then it will be time to get into the Severus/Harry father/son relationship. I am very excited!

Please review!


	5. The Secret's Out

Harry stirred in his bed as sleep slowly slipped away from him. He tried to settle in before consciousness completely took over, but it was worthless. Harry reached for his glasses and wristwatch from his night stand. Looking at the time, seeing that it was three o'clock in the morning, Harry sighed in frustration.

"Damn," he muttered to himself.

Although he had been incredibly tired when he made his way to the tower after the Welcoming Feast, Harry had tried really hard to stay awake. He had hoped Ron and Hermione would make it up soon so he could avoid falling asleep. Otherwise, he knew that, no matter how tired he may have been, he was bound to wake up in the wee hours of the morning, unable to get back to sleep.

Peering through the darkness, Harry found that his suite-mates were all sound asleep, Ron snoring to his left. Resigned to the fact that he would not be able to get back to sleep, Harry quietly climbed out of bed, found his robe, and headed down to the common room.

When he got down there, he was happy to find that there was a fire still going to keep him warm. As he made his way over to one of the overstuffed chairs in front of the fireplace, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye.

"Hermione, what are you doing up?" He asked. She was curled up on the floor in front of the sofa.

Hermione looked up at him unfazed. "I could ask you the same thing." She said with a smirk. She patted the spot on the floor next to her. Harry didn't mind the idea of sitting next to Hermione; it was just that he knew that the hard stone floor would be uncomfortable for his backside.

"Um…" That was all he got out before realization flashed through his best friend's eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Harry." She said as she began to stand up. There was a moment of silence between them. While it wasn't exactly awkward, there was still a tension there that neither of them could discern.

"You can have the sofa if you like, you could lie down. I can take one of the chairs." She offered.

While he was somewhat embarrassed about his situation, Harry didn't want Hermione to feel uncomfortable around him, nor did he want pity from her.

"Hermione, it's fine. I wouldn't mind sharing the couch with you." he said with a smile.

Hermione looked like she was about to object, but to Harry's relief, she just nodded her consent. Harry indicated that Hermione should sit down first before he eased himself onto the couch.

For awhile, there was silence between the two friends; they both sat and stared into the fire.

Hermione sat next to Harry with a million things running through her head. There was so much that she wanted to say, so many questions that she wanted to ask, but she didn't know where to begin.

She stole a glance at Harry out of the corner of her eye.

In that moment, Hermione could see that there truly was something different about her best friend; something was wrong. To her knowledge, she couldn't remember ever seeing him look so fragile.

Taking a deep breath, Hermione plucked up all the courage she had left after having confronted the Headmaster.

"You seem different." She said.

Harry, caught off guard by the statement, let his mouth slack open in surprise.

"Wh-what do you mean?" he asked, his voice cracking a little.

Hermione shook her head. "Harry, it's me, what do you suppose I mean?" she demanded. "I have never seen you look so defeated, so…broken." She spoke the last word softly, but Harry still heard her.

"Hermione," he paused to clear his throat. "I-I'm fine. I swear. It's nothing out of the usual. Classes start tomorrow, we'll all fall into our routines, and before I know it I will be all healed up as though nothing happened." Harry tried to assure her.

Having watched the change in Hermione's expression as he said his piece, Harry had to look away. He had never seen her look like that before; she looked so…confused.

And he knew why. The problem was he didn't want to admit to it.

"But something has happened, Harry. I have tried to understand why you don't let Ron and I help you for _years_ now. You don't always have to be the hero you know. Sometimes, it's about letting the ones who love you the most take care of you."

"I'm…I don't know what you want me to do Hermione. It is what it is! Don't you think that, if I thought it were possible, I would talk to someone and try to get some help?" he asked.

"No, I don't actually. And that's why I get so frustrated with you! You are so quick to rush in and help someone else. What if it were me? Or Ron? How would you feel if either of us was in your shoes? Would you let us continue to suffer, just sit back and watch it happen?" Hermione was breathing hard, clearly on the verge of tears by the time she finished her tirade.

"You know I wouldn't let that happen. How can you even…ask…that…?" Harry trailed off. He was trapped, and he knew it.

It seemed like an eternity passed before either of them spoke again.

"I'm sorry, Harry." That was all Hermione said before she stood up and walked up the stairs to the girls' dormitory.

Something inside Harry made him feel like he should have stopped her, apologized, anything. He didn't want her to be angry with him. What he didn't understand was why _she _had apologized to _him_; the part of him that wanted to focus on that urged him to allow her to go to bed and get some sleep; she looked exhausted.

As he silently mulled over everything Hermione had just said, Harry idly noticed that the fire was dying down. A quick glance at his watch told him that it was nearly four o'clock in the morning. Figuring he had time left to spare, he cast a quick spell to make the fire roar back to life.

In his haze, Harry let his mind wander over the summer he'd had. Staying with the Dursleys had been truly awful this summer. In all of his years living with them, his aunt and uncle had never been as violent as they had been this past holiday.

As he had admitted to his friends on the train, it had seemed like, no matter what he did, Harry could not avoid the wrath of his relatives. He couldn't recall a day going by where he was able to avoid being hit somehow.

That thought alone reminded Harry of the condition of his posterior, making him squirm to find a more comfortable position. When that didn't work, he gave up and decided to stretch out on the couch. Lying on his side, Harry continued to stare into the fire.

Trying to push all thoughts of the summer out of his mind, Harry focused on the fact that classes would be starting that very day; that meant he had nine months to live happily as a 'normal' teenager. He couldn't help but smile at the thought.

Knowing that he had at least two more hours until his roommates would start to wake-up, Harry decided that, even if he couldn't get any more sleep, he would at least try to relax in the warmth of the fire. Trying to keep all unpleasant thoughts out of his mind, Harry closed his eyes and focused on trying to clear his mind.

* * *

><p>"Harry…Harry…Harry. Hey, mate. It's time to get up!" Ron tried to shake his friend awake. "Fine," he tried to sound threatening. "I will give you to the count of three before I douse you in <em>ice cold<em> water!" Ron stood back and took out his wand.

Harry stirred at that.

"One…two…th –"

"Ok, ok. I'm up!" Harry insisted. Slowly opening his eyes, Harry took in his surroundings. Feeling that his glasses were resting precariously on the tip of his nose, he straightened them out and found himself lying on the couch in the common room.

"What the?" he asked.

"I was just about to ask you the same." Ron chuckled. "I must have slept real well last night, because I was the first one up, or so I thought, until I found your bed empty. I came down here to try and find you. I figured you wouldn't care to be found in your bedclothes by some first year bounding down the stairs early because they're scared to sleep through the first day of classes." He smiled.

"Thanks." Harry smiled back.

"Come on. Let's hurry up and get ready so we can head down to the Great Hall for breakfast. I'm starving!"

Harry couldn't help but laugh at that.

Thinking back on last night, Harry, once again, couldn't help but feel like he had missed out on a great first night back with his best friends. He truly missed their company. That was until he remembered his conversation with Hermione earlier that morning.

"Hey Ron, I'm sorry if I may have seemed a bit distant last night. I just, I had a lot on my mind." Ron gave Harry a knowing look before red crept into his cheeks. "No worries mate." He assured Harry.

As the pair started heading up the stairs, Harry asked, "Is something wrong with Hermione? She was up when I came down earlier this morning, and something just didn't seem right with her. Did I miss something last night?"

Ron quickly tried to think of a response to that. He had no intentions of telling Harry that he and Hermione had paid a visit to Dumbledore the previous night. He quickly decided that playing ignorant would be his best choice. "You know Hermione. It's always something with her. She's probably just stressed about classes already." He tried to brush it off.

Harry seemed to accept the answer, so Ron quickly tried to change the topic. "Speaking of classes, how excited are you that Lupin is back to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts?" he enthused.

Harry whipped his head around so fast that Ron was sure he would get whiplash. "Wh-what do you mean Lupin is back? When did you hear that?" Harry asked in disbelief.

Ron eyed Harry quizzically before answering. "Wow, mate. You really were out of it last night, huh?" When Harry simply looked away and blushed, he continued. "Dumbledore made the announcement at the feast last night. Lupin sat right between Hagrid and Trelawney. You really didn't see him?"

Harry swallowed deeply. "No." He answered shortly.

Ron tried to smile. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure he will be happy to see you in class."

The pair made it the rest of the way to the boys' dormitory so they could get ready for the first day of classes. When they had both showered and gotten dressed, they made their way back down to the common room to wait for Hermione before leaving for breakfast.

Upon entering the common room, Harry spotted Hermione perched by the window, reading. When she noticed the boys making their way over to her, she looked up, noting the worried expression on Harry's face.

"Good morning," she offered pleasantly. Harry smiled at her, trying to determine where he stood with Hermione after their conversation early that morning.

Ron looked on at the exchange. Something felt off, but then he remembered that Harry had asked if everything had been alright with Hermione. Figuring it would be best to get the ball rolling, he inserted his two cents.

"I don't know about you two, but I am _starved. _Ready for breakfast?" he asked as he led the way to the portrait hole.

Harry and Hermione followed a few paces behind. Once they were out in the corridor, Hermione spoke up. "Look, Harry. I am sorry about this morning. I shouldn't have been so short with you. Can you forgive me?" She knew that, at least for awhile, things would be off between the three of them. She just wanted to enjoy a regular morning with her two best friends while she still could.

Baffled by the idea that his friend could possibly think he was angry with her, Harry quickly stated, "Hermione, there is nothing for you to be sorry about! I was completely out of line. I am the one who should be apologizing right now, not you."

The two smiled at each other. Unbeknown to him, Harry had similar feelings about what had happened earlier that morning. What had been said had been said, and all he wanted was to enjoy the feeling of being back in his beloved castle with his two best friends.

With that behind them, Harry and Hermione lengthened their strides in order to catch up with Ron.

Once in the Great Hall, the trio claimed their favorite seats at the Gryffindor table. Since they were among the first students to make it down for breakfast, the hall was still relatively quite, making Harry self conscious about his grunt of discomfort when he sat down. When he looked across the table at Hermione, and then to his left at Ron, he was happy to see that both of them were pretending they didn't notice his change in demeanor, simply going about deciding what they wanted for breakfast. Looking around at what he had to choose from, Harry went about making his own selections.

"When is Quidditch set to start?" Ron asked conversationally.

"I don't know. I suppose there will be an announcement on the bulletin board sometime this week. Why? Thinking about trying out?" Harry asked.

Ron looked at Harry with a raised eyebrow.

"What do you mean you don't know? You're the one who decides all of that, aren't you?" he asked.

Harry dropped his fork. How could he have forgotten? He was the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team this year! After Angelina graduated last year, she had announced him as her successor as team captain.

"Don't tell me you forgot that you were running the team this year?" Hermione sounded amused. "After you couldn't stop talking about it at the end of last term; really Harry." She chuckled, shaking her head.

Harry couldn't help the blush that spread through his cheeks. He almost said something rude in return, but one quick glance at Hermione told him that she was simply trying to act as though things were normal between them again; he smiled instead.

"I suppose I will have to speak with Madame Hooch and figure out when the pitch is available. I'll probably hold tryouts sometime next week, give people time to adjust to being back at school and all." He shrugged.

"Well, I think that is very considerate of you, Harry." She beamed.

As the group of friends went about eating their breakfast, Harry noticed that the Great Hall was starting to fill up more. He looked at his watch to check the time.

"McGonagall should be coming around with schedules soon, shouldn't she?" Harry asked. Hearing the familiar screeches and hoots of the post owls, he looked up and added, "She's usually starts making her rounds before the post gets here."

Hermione and Ron caught each other's eye and looked up at the head table to see if Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were there. The pair appeared to be deep in conversation. Harry followed the gaze of his friends. "Maybe she just got caught up in their conversation." He guessed.

As owls continued to swarm overhead, the three friends all seemed surprised when an owl landed in front of them; attached to its leg were three letters, one addressed to each of them.

"Isn't that Dumbledore's writing?" Harry asked. Ron just shrugged while Hermione nodded. "What do you think he could possibly want on the first day of the new term?"

After having untied the letters from around the owl's ankle, Harry handed out the letters to his friends. Hermione, no longer hungry, gave the owl the rest of her toast before it flew off.

"He says he wants to see me in his office straight after breakfast. What about you?"

"Same," said Ron. Hermione just nodded again.

Unable to figure out a reason for why the headmaster would like to see him, Harry finally put down his letter and looked up at his friends.

"You two seem awfully quiet all of a sudden. Is everything alright?" Harry asked.

Hermione, not wanting Harry to think much of it, put on a brave face. "Yeah, fine. Thanks. I guess I just didn't want to worry about starting off the term already behind. Our meetings with Dumbledore aren't exactly known for being short and sweet." She rolled her eyes.

Ron looked up at the head table once more. "He's gone. Do you think we should head up to his office now? Or should we wait for our schedules first."

"I'm sure we can get copies of our schedules while we're there. Let's just go so we can find out what he wants." Harry answered.

Ron nodded. When Harry was already walking ahead of him to exit the Great Hall, he smiled sadly at Hermione, knowing that Harry would not be so eager to meet with the headmaster if he had an inkling of what they were all meeting with him for.

* * *

><p>Upon reaching the door to the Headmaster's office, Harry knocked to announce their arrival.<p>

Dumbledore cleared his throat before hollering, "Come in!"

As the trio made their way into Dumbledore's office, he greeted them. "Good morning! Would any of you care for a lemon drop?" He offered his tin of said sweets as all the three students politely declined. Dumbledore took one for himself before setting the tin back on his desk.

"If you please, why don't we make ourselves more comfortable and settle in by the fire. How's that sound? Hmm?" the Headmaster led the way over to the seating area where Ron and Hermione had sat with him the previous evening.

The group of friends made their way over to the designated area. In the mean time, Dumbledore lit a fire in the fireplace before sitting down as well. "I trust the three of you had a comfortable first night back in the castle?" he asked conversationally.

The trio looked to each other uncomfortably. Figuring he could at least humor the man, Harry answered, "Yes, thank you sir. It's great to be back."

"Marvelous!" Dumbledore enthused.

Silence settled over the room once again. "Oh, my apologies; I forgot to mention that we are waiting for Professor McGonagall to join us. She should be here soon." Dumbledore said.

Harry, Ron and Hermione nodded in response. Shortly after, the fire roared green and Professor McGonagall stepped through the fireplace. "Good morning," she greeted with a pleasant smile.

Minerva sat down in a chair next to her husband.

"It looks like we're all here." Dumbledore said. He glanced around at the occupants of the room before continuing. "I imagine you are wondering why I have requested your presence here this morning."

Harry nodded, not realizing that the statement was directed solely at him.

"Harry, it seems that your friends have some concerns about your wellbeing, and thought it best to bring them to my attention last evening. Do you have any idea what those concerns might be?"

All color drained from Harry's face. All of a sudden, the room felt like it was spinning; there was no way this was happening. Truth was, he knew _exactly_ what those concerns were.

Harry slowly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It wouldn't do him any good to freak out…not just yet. What if, not matter how slim the chances, he was wrong? What if the concerns the Headmaster was addressing had nothing to do with what he actually feared?

"Take a deep breath, Mr. Potter. No one is judging you here." Said Professor McGonagall.

Alright, no such luck; it looked like his assumption had been correct.

"Um…you see…" Harry's voice cracked with anxiety. His heart rate was steadily increasing and the room felt like it was closing in on him.

"Mr. Potter, please look at me." Dumbledore stated calmly. It took a lot of effort on his part, but Harry was able to make eye contact with the professor. The moment he locked eyes with the older man, he felt the tension in his body relax. With Professor McGonagall's continued encouragement, he tried to focus more on his breathing.

"Harry, we have no intentions of trying to alarm you. We just want to talk to you. You should count yourself lucky for having friends who care for you so much." Dumbledore soothed.

The reminder that his friends were the reason he was sitting in the Headmaster's office snapped him back to the present. Harry ventured a glance over at his two best friends, both sitting anxiously on the couch, just waiting for him to explode.

Looking back at the Headmaster, Harry asked, "What exactly am I doing here?"

The room was silent.

Professor McGonagall looked at her husband, searching for something to say.

"Mr. Potter…Harry. It seems that your friends here are concerned about the safety of your living conditions with your relatives. Do you have any idea why either of them would suspect such issues?" she asked gently.

Harry saw red.

"BECAUSE THEY LED ME TO BELIEVE THAT I COULD TRUST THEM WITH A SECRET! THEY PROMISED TO NEVER TELL ANOTHER LIVING SOUL!"

"Harry-"

"NO! You want to talk about my living situation? Why don't you ask the headmaster? He's the one who placed me there! He's the one who, even after I defeated Voldemort, decided I needed the protection of a blood ward!" He was livid. For years, Harry felt like he had been the pawn in one large chess game. It never seemed to matter how he was handling everything, as long as he was on the right path to defeat Voldemort.

And then opportunity struck; he had defeated the vile man, and not much had changed for him. He was still forced to live under the "protection" of the blood wards created by his mother's sacrifice, it didn't matter that he was being made to suffer _within _those same wards.

Dumbledore's features softened. "Harry, I only ever had your wellbeing at heart. I have obviously failed you because, honestly, I had no idea what was going on until your friends came to me last night." He gave Harry a moment to let that sink in; when he didn't say anything, Dumbledore continued. "I understand that I can never undo what I have already done, the way I neglected you, but I would like to do all I can to make sure you are taken care of appropriately now that I am aware of your situation. Can you let me do that for you, Harry?"

Harry just sat there silently. A large part of him wanted to start yelling again. How could his friends betray him like that? But at the same time, it seemed like Dumbledore truly wanted to help him, maybe even remove him from his relatives' residence. The part of Harry that wondered about a possible change in living made him calm down a little bit.

"What do you want to know, professor?" Harry asked. He tried to sound confident, but his voice had come out very low, barely above a whisper, and even cracked a bit.

* * *

><p>Harry, Ron, Hermione, Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore spent a large portion of the morning discussing the secrets Harry had been hiding over the years, the amount of abuse he had suffered at the hands of his relatives.<p>

When he realized what time it was, nearly lunch time, Dumbledore suggested the group take a break for lunch, with the instruction that Harry should come back to his office when he was finished eating. Hermione and Ron were given the rest of the day off because it was clear that they were both exhausted after the previous evening followed by the morning's events.

As the trio made their way down to the Great Hall, they were quite. It wasn't until the stood outside the great oak doors of the hall that Harry finally turned around to look at his friends so he could address them.

"Look…I think I get why you went to the headmaster last night. What I would like to know is, why couldn't you have come to me first?" Even as he asked this question, Harry thought he might know the answer.

Hermione and Ron looked at each other. Hermione looked like she had a million things to say, but wasn't sure where to begin. Ron spoke first.

"What good would it have done for us to talk to you? Honestly?" He asked.

Harry felt struck by the question.

"Now, before you go getting all upset, I want you to really think about it, mate."

Harry nodded. It took all he had not to just yell at his friends at that moment, but he knew Ron was right. He had a notable temper, and it wouldn't really help at time like this, no matter how much he thought it might make him feel better.

Ron nodded his head as he saw the expression on his friend's face change. "We didn't come to you first because it wouldn't have done us any good. We talked to you on the train like we do every year, but this year, something was different. We just…we knew that if we wanted something to be done about all of this, that we would have to go about it without telling you first, cause we knew you would never agree to it."

"We never meant to hurt you, Harry." Hermione finally piped in. "Quite the opposite actually. We wanted to make sure that no one would be able to hurt you ever again."

Harry noted the tears in her eyes as she finished speaking.

Silence fell over the trio once again.

Harry cleared his throat before speaking again. "Look. I may have over reacted in Dumbledore's office. I know you two care about me, and that you would just have my best interest at heart."

He scuffed his shoe idly against the stone floor before looking up and making eye contact with his friends. Ron was smiling a little while Hermione looked like she was focusing all of her energy on refraining from suffocating him with a hug. Harry just rolled his eyes at her antics, and before he even finished opening his arms to invite her in, Hermione had launched herself into him and began sobbing.

"We love you, Harry. Don't you ever forget that." She whispered.

* * *

><p>AN: I am SO SORRY for how long it took for me to get this chapter up! I believe I was doing really well with updating the first four chapters, but then this one came along, and it took forever to write! I read and reread it a couple of times, and I feel like at times it may have been a bit slow...dry even. HOWEVER, I decided to put all of this in one chapter so I can introduce SEVERUS in the next chapter!

I would love to know what you thought! Please review :)


	6. Not So Temporary Guardian

Severus Snape stalked through the hallways of Hogwarts as he made his way to his father's office, clearly in a foul mood.

Just as he had dismissed his last class before the lunch period, he heard a familiar voice calling his name from the direction of his office; he had left the door connecting to his classroom ajar.

Peeking into his office, Severus found his mother's head floating in the flames, an uncertain look on her face, immediately making him wary.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Mum?" he drawled.

"It's nice to see you too, Severus. Your father and I wish to speak with you in his office. Something of importance has come up, and it is imperative that you make it there as soon as you can." She answered.

Severus rolled his eyes but nodded.

"None of that, young man," Minerva admonished.

"Sorry, Mum," Severus apologized, not sounding the least bit repentant. "I just have to wrap up a few things and I will be there in a few minutes."

Seemingly satisfied, Minerva ended the fire call.

Now only one corridor from his father's office, Severus took a moment to ponder why he was needed. The only thing that came to mind was the discussion he had about guardianship with his parents the previous evening.

Once he reached them, Severus gave the password to the stone gargoyles, "gumballs," and climbed the spiral staircase. He had his fist raised to knock on the door when it suddenly opened on its own accord.

"Ah, Severus, thank you for joining us. Would you care to eat on the lounge or at the table?" Albus inquired.

"You called me up here just so I could have lunch with you? It's the first day of classes, aren't you supposed to eat in the Great Hall so you can make sure all of you precious little monsters are faring the torture of their professors just fine?" Severus intoned.

Unlike his wife, Albus frequently chose to ignore his son's snark. However, given the circumstances, his patience was probably lower than it typically would be. Knowing that Severus would be able to take a hint, he addressed his son.

"Well, Severus, you can either make yourself comfortable on the lounge, sit at the table, or I can direct you to a corner for you to put your nose in, your pick." He challenged.

Severus noticeably deflated. He had apparently misjudged his father's mood.

"The table is fine, sir." He answered quickly.

"Excellent." Albus smirked at his son's sudden change in behavior. He may be a grown man, but no matter what, Severus would always be his son, and as such, would be treated so.

As the men headed over towards the table, where a house elf had set out an array of fixings to choose from, Minerva made her way into the room, having been in she and her husband's living quarters, which connected to her husband's office behind his desk.

"Hello, Severus. Thank you for joining us this afternoon. I trust that your morning classes went well?" Minerva inquired as she joined her family at the dining table.

Severus grunted noncommittally. After considering the mood of his parents thus far this afternoon, he thought better of it and answered verbally. "It could have been worse, I suppose." He conceded.

"Good to hear, my boy." Albus intoned. "Now that we have those pleasantries aside, we might as well get on topic as to why you are here."

Severus quickly did a mental run through of all that he had done since he had last seen his parents the night before. The last thing he wanted was to be blindsided about having supposedly done something to upset them.

"No, son, it's nothing that you have done, although you could benefit from a bit of an attitude change, if I do say so myself." Albus raised an eyebrow at his son at that last bit. "Rather, this is about our dear Mr. Potter."

Severus took a deep calming breath as he served himself a helping of chicken stew. "What about him?" he asked evenly.

"Well, as you are aware from our conversation last night, Mr. Potter is in need of a new guardian. I am happy that you are willing to step into this role for him and your mother and I believe it would be a good idea to discuss this a bit more now that we know the full gravity of the situation."

Severus looked between his mother and father before nodding his head. As he cleared his throat, Severus reached for his glass of water to take a sip.

When his son remained silent, Albus prodded, "Are your mother and I correct to assume that you are still willing to take on the responsibility of being Harry's guardian?"

For a moment, Severus seriously considered laughing and stating that no, he absolutely was _not_ willing to take on the responsibility of being said brat's guardian; that rather, he was under the impression that he didn't really have a choice. However, that would be a lie. Severus had spent a good portion of his evening thinking about what his parents had said, about how taking Potter…no, Harry…in would be a way to honor the memory of James and Lily, not to mention wipe away any feelings he may have that he _owed_ the boy something.

"Yes, sir; I am still willing to be Mr. Potter's guardian."

Minerva couldn't help the tug she felt at the corners of her lips. It had taken many years, but it seemed as though her boy was finally growing up, thinking about someone besides himself; at least trying to put past grudges behind him.

"Excellent!" Albus cheered. Then, taking on a more serious face, he looked at son before continuing. "After our discussion with Harry this morning, your mother and I have come to the conclusion that it is in the boy's best interest that we move this process along as quickly as possible. If we sit on this, we risk the chance of the ministry getting involved, and that is the last thing we need. After all that the boy has been through, I think the least we could do is give him a safe home with a loving family."

Severus found himself nodding in agreement, but quickly stopped. All of this was sounding a little…permanent.

"I thought this was supposed to be a temporary arrangement?" he asked.

"Oh, it will be." Albus smiled.

Minerva noted the twinkle in her husband's eye, and so did Severus.

Putting his fork down, Severus took yet another calming breath. "Just how temporary are we talking here, dad?"

Albus' smile grew even wider. "Well, Harry is 15 now. That leaves only two more years until he turns 17. After his seventh year, who's to say he won't want to move out on his own?"

Severus couldn't find the strength in him to respond to that rationally. Rather, he shook his head and stood to leave. He didn't make it halfway to the door before he heard his father speak.

"Just one minute, son, don't think you're going anywhere. We're not quite finished yet." Albus' voice was deadly calm.

Not wanting to anger his father further, Severus stopped in his tracks and slowly turned around. However, rather than making his way back to the table, he stubbornly crossed his arms over his chest and glared.

Albus looked his son over and shook his head. "I believe I warned you about your attitude, my boy. You have about five seconds to find yourself a corner before I decide you need my assistance getting there."

Severus quickly lost the glare and stared open mouthed at his dad. That did not last long, however. Before he could stop himself, Severus began ranting at his father.

"How dare you?! All this time you have been talking about what's best for _Mr. Potter_!What about what's best for _me_?! Why should I just sit here and take it as you try and control my life for me? I am a _grown man_, and the last thing I need right now is to have my father meddling in my life because he thinks he knows what's best for me! STOP TREATING ME LIKE A CHILD!"

By the time he was finished, Severus was panting for breath.

"Are you quite finished?" Albus asked patiently.

Severus' stomach sank. Thinking about all that he had just said, he realized that he had done more damage than good.

"You are wasting time. Don't test me, Severus." Albus still sounded calm, almost too calm.

That did it. Severus quickly snapped out of his trance before rushing over to a corner in the lounge area of the office. The last thing he wanted right now was for his dad to make good on the threat of helping him to one.

Taking a deep breath, Albus looked at his wife, who made her way to his side and wrapped him in a warm embrace. Speaking into his shoulder, she said, "Just give him some time to cool off. You and I both know that this whole situation probably hits a little too close to home for him, and he just doesn't know how to handle how he feels about it all."

Albus chuckled.

"Since when did you become the softy?"

"Well, one of us has to do it. We can't both be the tough parent, at least, not at the same time."

Minerva glanced at her son in the corner.

"He's already regretting what he said, you can tell by the slouch of his shoulders. That just proves that I'm right about all of this. Don't worry so much, we'll work it all out."

"What would I do without you?" Albus asked before placing a delicate kiss on his wife's forehead.

"Probably kill him." Minerva chuckled, indicating their errant son in the corner.

The couple made their way over to one of the couches by the fireplace to wait for their son to finish cooling off. Fifteen minutes later, Albus finally released him, requesting that he join them.

Once seated in a comfortable chair adjacent to the couch his parents were sitting on, Severus found it difficult to look either of them in the eye. Before he could stutter out an apology, Minerva spoke.

"Listen, Severus. We understand that this is a very difficult topic of conversation for you. Not just that, the whole situation is emotional and confusing, and I am sure it is bringing back a lot of unwanted memories, whether they are about your childhood or Harry's parents. Regardless, this is something that needs to be handled in adult fashion. Can we please do that?"

Severus opened and closed his mouth a few times before simply nodding. Silence settled over the small family before Severus finally worked out what he wanted to say.

"Mum, dad…I'm sorry. I know that none of this is your fault. You're right, I don't exactly want to deal with any of this, but it's not just going to go away." He paused for a moment. "It's not anyone's fault but Voldemort that Harry doesn't have his parents. The boy deserves a family that loves him. I want to do this for Lily and James, but also Harry. I promise, I will try to act like an adult about this."

Regardless of the fact that his parents often pretended that he couldn't hear what they were talking about when he was standing in the corner, he could, and Severus had been appalled to realize that his mother was absolutely right about what she had said to his father. Up until the point his mum started to placate his dad, Severus had refused to believe he deserved the childish punishment he had been given. However, after hearing what his mum had to say, he knew that he had to admit that it was the truth. So, no matter how much he wanted to dig his heals in and be stubborn about the whole situation, Severus realized that now was not the time; Lily's son needed him, not just someone to take him in until he graduated from Hogwarts, but him, Severus Snape.

Albus and Minerva knew that they had finally struck a chord with their son.

"Excellent," Albus praised. "Now that we have that settled, we need to figure out how we are going to bring this up to Mr. Potter. No offence, Severus, but we all know that the boy isn't exactly fond of you. That being said, we are going to have to prove to him that you are the best candidate for the job, and that you are going to stop making his life a living hell. Do you think you can handle that?"

"How, exactly, do you propose that I do that? He has no reason to trust me, let alone even give me a chance to prove myself to him."

They were all silent for a moment.

Minerva was the first one to speak.

"After lunch, Harry has been instructed to return to your father's office. I know that it's the first day of classes, but I think that, in order for this to work, you need to be here when he returns. We need to show him that the three of us are a family, explain that we want to welcome him as a member. Unfortunately, I don't believe we will be able to sell him on just you, Severus. However, if we present ourselves as a package deal, I think he may see the appeal."

"Perfect!" Albus announced. He took a quick look at the clock on the mantel of the fire place to see how much more time they had until Harry's return. "It seems that Harry should be returning soon. Severus, why don't you floo back to your office so you can leave a note on your classroom door, explain that your afternoon classes have been canceled. I know how much you like to be the only one to conduct the first classes of the term so your students are aware of your standards. Your mother and I will be waiting for your return. Do hurry back, it would probably be best if you are already here when Harry arrives."

Severus quickly excused himself to follow through with his father's orders. When he returned via floo, Harry had still not arrived.

"You're just in time," Minerva told him. "It sounds like someone his making their way up the stairs."

Severus nodded.

Suddenly, he was feeling quite nervous. He wasn't sure why, but the gravity of the situation at hand seemed to strike hard all of a sudden.

_Knock, knock, knock. _

Albus looked at his wife and son with a small smile on his lips.

Taking a deep breath, he answered, "Come in!"

* * *

><p>AN: Thank you so much for reading the new chapter! Sorry about the long break between this update and the last. Life got pretty busy over the last few months, but thankfully, things have finally slowed down enough that I can actually pick up some hobbies that I had to put aside.

Please review! I would love to hear what you all think!


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